It’s been a tradition in our family for as long as I can remember, that when you see the first star of the night, you make a wish. This wish is to be kept secret and is not to be shared with everyone, otherwise, you wouldn’t get the wish.

The same thing happens on birthdays. You know how this works! You bake a cake, put some candles on the top, light the candles and tell your child to make a “what?” You tell them to make a wish and blow out the candles!

People make a wish as they blow the seed flurries from a dandelion.

Some people make wishes every time they see a falling star. My wife taught me one that I encourage every man to take advantage of…..with every tunnel you pass through, give your wife a kiss, and of course , make a wish.

There are a ton of examples out there and everyone has their own special “Make a Wish” traditions. These traditions are passed from generation to generation as if they were of some unknown or astronomical value. Heirlooms worth thousands and thousands of dollars get sold off before “Make a Wish” traditions are dropped or forgotten.

So what’s the big deal? Why do we teach our children and grand children these things? Why is it so important?

It’s simple…..We are teaching our children to NEVER… STOP… DREAMING!

Every one of us were born into this world, curious, inquisitive and ingrained with the natural ability to dream and create. We, as adults, play a very small roll in keeping these types of traditions alive. Once you teach a child how to dream and wish, with every opportunity to do so, they will make that wish. They will continue to dream. Children keep the dreams in all of us alive and well. You can’t look at a child without wondering what they will create in their lifetime, who they will be and what they will become.

I’ve seen situations in which parents destroy this very important attribute in children with their negativity and lack of compassion. Instead of encouragement, they give disappointment and despair. To look into a child’s eyes after they have been informed that their dreams will never come true is one of the most heart breaking occurrences. I wouldn’t wish that upon any child or their parents. Yet I’ve seen it happen. It’s sad and pathetic.

That’s what happens when a tattered, broken soul meets a naive, dreaming soul. So many people can make that transition. One bad experience or one failure can cause someone to stop dreaming…to stop making those wishes. In being a creature of habit, instead of keeping the habit of dreaming alive, they adopt the habit of disappointment and attempt to ingrain that habit into every person they come into contact with…and that includes children.

If our children stop dreaming, what kind of a future could we possibly build? What kind of a future could we build if we stop dreaming?

I encourage you to not only keep these traditions alive and well in your families, and also in your life. Whenever you see a falling star, blow out your birthday candles, blow the seeds from a dandelion, see the first star of the night or pass through a tunnel, make a wish. Start your dreams right there, and then follow through with the necessary actions to bring them to reality. A wish is just a wish without action. It’s better to have dreamed and failed to accomplish that dream than to have never dreamed at all.